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Mid-mountain and base area restaurants.ĥ) Orion and the dippers. But it’s a novelty that you’ll find only at Alta.Ĥ) Eat. Of course you don’t need to use it because you can ski all around the mountain. You can ride both directions across the flat base area. 2,200 acres, 116 named runs, 7 chair lifts, and a surface rope tow that’s a hoot. If you stay in the city you can take a frequent UTA ski bus to the mountain.ģ) Stats. Alta is just 45 minutes from Salt Lake City International Airport. Alta does not allow snowboards.Ģ) Convenient. But book early if you want to stay there because they’re very popular.Įvening activities include fireside history talks and other local events.
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There are several lovely slopeside hotels that blend into the landscape and are scarcely noticeable. Alta is within a national forest, so there are no shopping centers or high rise hotels. Wrap up the day with a specialty brew at Alta Java, an outdoor coffee bar at snow level just beneath the Albion Grill where you started. ’s correspondent Harriet Wallis and friend have a cuppa java at the end of the day. A Tour With a Ranger will not disappoint.
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at the top of the Sunnyside lift and take a tour to learn about the area’s environment, animals, and history. On weekends and holidays meet trained naturalists at 1:30 p.m. What else can I do? Alta has extensive rentals and demos, so check out some of the latest gear, especially if it’s a powder day. While at Alf’s, go to the farthest corner, and you’ll find fascinating photos of Alta’s past. My personal favorite is hot chocolate topped with a mound of whipped cream.
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It’s the second place where you can make more senior friends.īuy a hot beverage at Alf’s and enjoy a free refill. They’ll be having coffee or lunch and exchanging notes on their morning of skiing. That’s when members of Alta’s Wild Old Bunch gather at the restaurant’s only round table. After a few laps on Supreme and Sugarloaf lifts, drop into Alf’s mid-mountain restaurant about 11 a.m. Engen envisioned it as perfect for skiing – and Alta was bornĪlta skiers, and especially senior skiers, are avid about the uniquely vast terrain with its wide open slopes. That’s when it hired iconic ski jumper and legendary ski pioneer Alf Engen to check it out and see if the area had any value. Forest Service had domain over the vast area but had no clue what to do with it. The only thing left was stubble, and hungry sheep overgrazed it right down to the ground. They cut down the trees and hauled off the timber to shore up the mines and to build early Salt Lake City. Fast forward to the days of pioneers and silver miners.
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Why does Alta have such wide open skiing? Ancient glaciers carved Alta. Introduce yourself, and you’ll have instant ski friends. They enjoy conversation as they boot up and fuel up with a hearty breakfast. The sun pours in making it a cheery gathering place, and it’s the first place where seniors meet. Come early and park at the Albion Grill day lodge that’s just steps from your car. But it also has tough, gnarly in-bounds chutes and cols that can only be reached by serious hikes.Īs the day begins.
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It has wide, wide open bowls with groomed trails, but everywhere you look slopes are left a u natural and full of powder. It averages 500 inches of snow a year which earns it the nickname: Skiers’ Paradise. Here is Big Dipper, a beautiful “blue” level run.Ĭredit: Harriet Wallis It’s Vast Open Space And Powder.Īlta is the granddaddy of powder skiing. Alta is all about open slopes and big vistas.
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